The Fires of Pompeii
by dragonfire1237
Summary: I am a spirit born from the fires of the once Pompeii. I am known as the spirit of change, or more commonly, the Changer (Said with the proper amount of disgust of course). I am the reason why children forget the spirits they believe in, I make children grow up, whether they do evil or good, it is not for me (or anyone else) to decide. OC possible romance, There is a Monkey
1. Chapter 1

I was born from the fires of Pompeii, the survivor of a disaster so large it swallowed an entire city in deadly ash.

I was born to a woman who did not want nor need me in the back room of a seedy rundown inn within the walls of the mighty city Pompeii sometime in the year 61 AD. As soon as I was old enough to survive on my own, which my mother considered to be around the age of four, I was left on the streets to die a slow painful death of starvation. Luckily for me, I was adopted into a gang of children who taught me how to survive and pillage for food. By the time I was seven I was an excellent thief. I could bribe, beg, or steal from anyone. I rose quickly within the hierarchy that made up my little world, until I was at the leader of my gang at the age of 13. At this age I first discovered religion, which is I attended a service at the temple of the goddess Diana, goddess of the hunt, the moon, and of birthing. I knew little about babies, other than some of the older girls in the gang talked about "begetting" one. I knew that was not something I wanted, even though I adored the babies and small children in my gang and had a strict rule against hurting children unless absolutely necessary and I never let a child killer into my gang. I can't explain why I cared about the littles, I knew in my head that they would only slow me down, that they would only cause me problems, but I couldn't help my feelings anymore than I could help what happened to Pompeii. By the time I was 18 I was fully involved in the local smuggling business. I brought in spices, jewelry, and rare animals to the wealthy and powerful. I was very select in my clientele, I only provided animals to the patrons I knew would take good care of them, patrons that were very far and few in-between. I had an ability that led animals to trust in me. Maybe the gods were angry at us because of the depravity our city and nation fell into, or maybe the volcano was just having an off day, whatever it was it was the event that changed me.

Chapter 1. Pompeii 79 AD

This year was different somehow. The nights were darker, the streets are more dangerous, the inhabitants are seedier, and sometimes when I look up at the mountain that towers over the city I see an ominous red glow. It is time for me to move on from this city, I have already started to make plans, however every time I imagine leaving I imagine the littles under my care that wouldn't survive. Along with building up my smuggling operation, I had purchased a house in the city which catered to the children living in the city, giving them a roof over their heads and food to eat. I begin to plan with them in mind.

A few months have passed since I felt the fear the mountain gave me. I was sitting in one of the rooms of my house where I had my office talking to my lieutenant, Avita.

"Is everything ready?" I ask in a low voice.

"Not yet, we still need a few more weeks to perfect everything." She replied in a low voice.

"I _need _it to be ready now! We can't wait a few more weeks." I reply as I pace around the room.

My thoughts returning to the quakes that have been shaking the city the past few weeks. People have written it off as just another "thing" that the gods do. Though I know for a fact that the gods are fickle creatures, I doubt they have anything to do with this. Diana has been my constant companion these past five years guiding me and comforting me in my times of distress.

"What's eating you up? I know the earthquakes are making you edgy, but it's just another prank of the gods to teach us who's in control." She says soothingly.

"Ha! It's more than just the gods playing pranks on us, haven't you noticed the mountain? It glows sometimes, an ominous red that can only bespeak evil! We need to leave, and soon." I snap back at her, running my fingers through my long loose black hair anxiously.

"I can just feel it you know, like something real bad is about to happen."

"Alright Chief, you haven't steered us wrong yet, and I certainly agree with leaving the city." She replied.

"Good."

Then the room begins to shake, and a roar like I have never heard before or since splits the sky.

And so this is the first part, if you like where you think this is going (a new spirit yay!) than comment on what you would like! Suggestions are always appreciated.


	2. Chapter 2

**Buried**

Screams of pure terror wrenched the air as panicked people ran in every direction. Some ran towards their homes, hoping that they would offer some protection from the wall of ash and pumice that blotted out the sky. Others were running towards the gate of the city, hoping only to save their own lives.

"Quick, grab all the children in the building that you can find, load them with the golds that we already have in storage, and lead them to the rendezvous point as quick as you can. If you see any of ours on the street have them stop whatever they are doing and follow you!"

I yelled, reaching into the desk in front of me and snatching up a bag of coins and tossing it to her.

"What about the other children, and the rest of the cargo? We can't just leave them!"

"We're going to have to. I'll loose the animals, they at least deserve a chance to run, not that they'll make it very far. This city won't be here for much longer, it'll be gone! Completely covered in soot and ash and all the people stupid enough to stay in their homes will die with it. Now go!" I snap back at her in agitation already reaching towards the fabric draped across the doorway.

She nods and stands up straight with her legs spread in a fighter's stance, one arm behind her back and the other over her heart.

"It has been an honor to serve you." She said formally with a slight bow.

"It has been an honor to lead you." I reply in kind.

Ash, ash, ash. Ash everywhere, I can't see, I can't breathe. The sky has gone completely dark. The ash is now over the city, drifting lazily to the ground without a care of the insignificant creatures living where it landed. I shift my gaze slightly to the volcano, and can see slow trails of molten rock flowing from it.

I am suffocating, pressed down by the blackness surrounding me. I lie in the corner of a building, a place where I was able to drag myself, slowly, painfully, after tripping over a loose brick. I had just finished releasing the last animal ten minutes ago and was on my way to finding a ride out of Pompeii.

I am starting to lose focus. I know that there will be no new city to start over in, no more looking after children, no more smuggling. I will die here, in this place, among the other nameless masses, covered already to the top of my hips in ash. I feel a brief flash of grief over the ones that I couldn't save, myself included.

"Diana, I thank you for letting me serve you so faithfully these past six years. I pray that the kindness I have shown will give me a spot in your hunt so that my services may continue even after death." I whisper hoarsely as ash begins to coat my throat. My eyes begin to drift shut and as they do my gaze shifts downward to the crook of my arm where a baby Capuchin monkey lay nestled.

"I would beg that this little one be spared the wrath of the gods, however, I don't believe that likely. If it cannot be spared at least let it go peacefully into the afterlife." I shifted the monkey closer, vainly trying to shelter it. The ash has climbed higher. The Capuchin had stuck with me after I had opened the cages, and even when I fell it had stayed by my side knowing that it would die.

I take a breath, and then another. The last breath I ever took as a human being choked in my throat as I gave into the sweet lull of death.

**Rising from the Ashes**

The first thing I hear is the unearthly screeching of a monkey. I grumble a little in my sleep and try to turn over, only to succeed in breathing in dust. My eyes fly open as I choke, only to see nothing but gray. I panic, I begin to scrape and claw my way up, or what I assume is up. In my panic I forget the Capuchin, which makes its displeasure about my movements known. My shifting the ash only makes it screech louder.

"Grab onto me." I chokingly command to it getting a mouthful of ash. It instantly latches onto my peplos (a type of dress used by roman women). It seemed like forever until I breached the layers of ash to the air above. My arms were weak as they scraped back the last layer separating me from the sweet freedom I so longed for.

As I pulled my head above the soot, and had my body follow, glad to be free from the confines of my ashen coffin. I then turned to gather my bearings. It was night time; the moon was out, full and glorious, shining above my little patch of land. The ash was still falling. It was slower and I could see the landscape better, but still it was falling. Everything else was gray and black and glowing a hellish red as far as the eye could see. Pools of molten lava sat spitting thick yellow globs at the sky daring it to rain more ash. The moon seemed like the only real thing out there, glowing so bright, illuminating a landscape directly out of the deepest pits of hades.

And that was when I realized I shouldn't be alive. I had been buried, completely covered under tons of ash.

I heard a harsh dry sound that was scraping through the air, and realized it was me. I was crying like I had only as a small child, when I was lonely and lost within the dank streets of Pompeii. I looked down at the capuchin as it wiggled its way up my ash caked arms to my shoulder. It reached its hand down to my cheek and rubbed some of the tears away. I turned my head achingly slowly to look at it, leaning into the hand for what little comfort it offered.

"S… Sa.. Saffeee." Came its quiet voice, as it looked me in the eye.

I stared at it like an ijit, my mouth agape. I had barely any time to register that the capuchin was speaking, when I felt a warm tingle go up my spine. I gazed upwards to the moon.

"Diana?" I whispered hoarsely.

I got no reply, only the briefest ray of warmth and comfort, and then it was gone.

I shakily pulled myself up, planting my hands in the ash to help steady myself. My arms sank almost to my elbows.

Then out of nowhere a slight breeze picked up. It steadily grew stronger and seemed to almost circle me, as if wondering what a person was doing in a wasteland such as this. For some reason unknown to me, to this very day, I used two words I had only ever uttered twice in my life.

"Help me."

_Yeah, chapter 2 (and i guess three) are finished! I even looked over them to make sure I didn't have to many mistakes. Please rate and review, I promise the story will pick up a little bit after this, as soon as I figure out what I want to do with it. I know what kind of spirit she'll be, and what the basic plot will be, but everything else I'll come up with as I type. I hope you like the Capuchin! (Monkeys are cute)._

_Again Please review!_


	3. Chapter 3 The West Wind

_**I'm just going to say this now, I'm sorry to all of you out there that know Latin, cause I'm sure I mangled it. I also work a job 40 hours a week, so I won't be able to update regularly, basically whenever I feel a creative spurt coming on, sorry in advance.**_

_**I should also put this in here - **_

_**I don't own anything, except my own ideas! **__**Yeah!**_

**The West Wind**

I shifted in the ash, and laughed gravelly at the insanity that had become my reality. Why was I asking someone for help? There was no one, and nothing here, only death, death and silence.

The Capuchin was sitting on my shoulder still, with one paw wrapped in my hair. He was staring out around us to the lava flows. His breathing was a little labored, but not as labored as it should be. Nor as nonexistent as it should be either. He looked down at me and smiled.

"What's so funny? From my perspective it looks like things couldn't get any…." The Capuchin quickly slapped a paw over my mouth. I looked at him questioningly.

"D… Don…. Don't say those words. Always b…. bad." He replied to the question on my face with a very serious look in his eyes. I burst out laughing, which quickly devolved into a fit of coughing that nearly bowled me over into the ash. His serious look turned into one of indignation.

"And, where have you learned that little tid bit of knowledge?"

"P… People."

"People?"

"Yes. People talk all the time."

"Do you know why _you_ can talk now?" The monkey looked at me and cocked its head to the side, thinking.

"No."

"Huh, well that's useful." The Capuchin gave a chattering laugh. It was my turn to cock my head to the side.

"I can't keep calling you Monkey so I guess I'll have to come up with a name for you." I purse my lips, looking at him quizzically.

"I w… want a good name." He stated imperiously, sitting up straighter on my shoulder and squaring his shoulders in a way that would make any commanding officer proud. He looked down his blunt nose at me.

"Hmm, then I'll just have to do that." I say with a snort. His chattery laugh floats through the silent landscape again.

A slight breeze stirred the ash around us, causing soot and dust to swirl in a lazy dance around us. Then suddenly the breeze became a gust that knocked us to the ground and nearly ripped the Capuchin from my shoulder. Luckily he latched onto my hair with all four of his paws releasing a screech that ripped through the silence like a jagged knife through flesh. I lay sprawled in the ash, coughing with dust coating my lungs. I quickly reached over my shoulder and grabbed the Capuchin

"Quickly, fidelitas!" I choke out, holding the monkey tightly to my chest.

The next gust lifted me off my feet. It carried us up into the air. Higher, higher, higher. We were carried through the clouds of ash reaching for a height that was dizzying, until we finally burst through the top of the ash cloud. A strangled scream escapes my lips as I clutched the Capuchin, my legs swinging wildly.

The moon was glowing even brighter now that it wasn't blocked by the clouds of ash. It was large, covering the sky in a dazzling display of silvery light. I was facing the moon and for a moment it seemed that everything seemed to stop. I stared at the moon, and the moon seemed to stare right back, plunging into my soul, finding my darkest secrets, and my greatest loves. Then the moment passed, and I was again suspended miles above the earth carried by nothing but the wind.

_Don't be afraid._

"Wha… what?!" I stutter as I hear a deep gentle voice like that of the wind moving through bright spring leaves. The leaves rustledin silent laughter.

_You _did _ask for my help. _

"Who are you? What are you?"

_Why, I'm the West Wind._

"Z.. Zephyrus?" The rustling laugh came again.

_Among other things, yes that is my name._

I look down at the top of the clouds, "Where are you taking us?"

_Away, _He replied slowly. I got the impression that he was thinking.

"Away, away WHERE?" It had not been a good day for me. The Capuchin chattered nervously in my arms looking around and sniffing trying to catch the scent of the being talking to us.

_Is there a place you need to be? _

"I want to know if my…. my family made it out." I hear a deep weary sigh.

_You don't have a family anymore, _came his quiet reply.

"What do you mean I don't have a family anymore?" I choked out nearly crying in denial.

_All the people who tried to escape from the city, didn't. They were too late, too stupid in their belief and arrogant in their knowledge._

I was silent for the moment trying to process how the entirety of my life was wiped out completely. I learned that I couldn't.

I threw back my head and keened. I was unaware of where the West Wind carefully took me, all I could see was the faces of the ones I was unable to help.

This was the beginning of my friendship with the West wind.

The West Wind carried us gently away and set us down in a grove. I lay where I was set, curled into a ball and wept for the people I couldn't save. I wept most for the children, knowing that they never really had a chance at life. The Capuchin laid his hand on my head, grooming his fingers through my hair. Zephyrus swirled around me worriedly.

"W… what did y.. you call me before?" The Capuchin asked tentatively, a few minutes after I started crying and was just beginning to taper off.

"F.. Fidelitas." I say wetly lifting my head up off the ground and wiping the dirt, tears, and snot from my face.

"What d.. does that mean?"

"Loyalty, trustworthiness, and faithfulness."

"I like that."

"I like it to, not many people can claim to have it though." He chattered a nervous laugh and shifted slightly looking at me expectantly.

"Then I name you Fidelitas, unum fidum, for you have been loyal to me."

"D.. does this mean I get to name you too?" He asked eyes wide, already contemplating the possibilities. I laugh shakily at him, wiping more snot off my face and laid my head back down on the ground looking at him.

"Yes, Fidelitas, that means you can give me a name, since everything about me is dead, my old name might as well be dead too."

He sits and thinks for a little while, "H.. how about Maeror?" I laugh again, this time with an edge of hysteria.

"Grief, sorrow, mourning. Yes that sounds like me alright, a fitting name indeed. For it feels as if all I will ever do is grieve." I feel like I'm going to cry again.

Fidelitas reached over and pulled my head towards his. He stared deep into my eyes, his night black eyes searching deep into my ash gray ones.

"Maeror because you grieve for the people you could not save even though you tried."

"How did you get to be so smart." I ask again.

"I… I don't know, I woke up like this. Like, like there was a.. a bridge connecting you to me and me to you. I knew what you knew, in a sense."

_It is because of the moon. He brought you back, but he didn't want you to be alone, _said Zephyros swirling closer.

"What does that mean?"

_You are no longer human, you are a spirit. The first born in many years I might add. The moon doesn't often make spirits. Not to mention I don't know what kind of spirit you are going to become._

"Interesting. What do you mean by he? Is it not Diana that is the deity of the moon?"

_The moon goes by many names, however he is a he. I don't know where those rumors started, it is utter silliness._

I stared around me in wonder, searching for something to lock gazes with, but all I saw was tree branches rustling in the wind as I listened to the lies that made up my life.

"What about the other gods?" I choke out.

_Mainly spirits that got a little to rambunctious and showed themselves to humans, the others are just the imaginings of humans._

"Showed themselves? Do we get to pick the people we wish to see us?"

_No. It isn't that simple, most humans can't see us, though on some occasion's children can, they have to believe in order for us to be seen._

"So I am going to be invisible, to everyone? How can they believe in something they don't even know exists?"

_For the most part, yes. In time they might learn of you, depending on your power. At least you have Fidelitas with you, and me. I will carry you where ever you wish to go._

"Take me, no, us away." I say standing up straight running my fingers through my hair and wiping the last of the dirt from my face. I look down at Fidelitas as he begins to climb my peplos heading for my shoulder. "To the west, over the great ocean and to the ends of the earth, I think it's time to go on an adventure."


	4. Chapter 4 Power

_Sorry I haven't updated all week, I was Famping (fancy camping) with my family and didn't have time to edit what I had typed. Again sorry for the Latin phrases, I google translated them. Please review and enjoy!_

**Power**

We travelled west were, instead of falling off the earth, we reached another land entirely different from the lands to the east. It was a vast terrain, full of every type of landscape. It had drenching rainforests, deep, mysterious forests, endless, rolling hills, soaring mountains, cavernous valleys, blistering deserts, and ageless glaciers. The territory also supported every type of animal, from monkeys to birds to bears. As a principle, I stayed clear of the people that lived on this ground. They were nomadic and often travelled from place to place dragging children and horses along with them, following the bison. Whenever I saw a settlement on the horizon I would immediately move on for I was not ready to face my nonexistence. Fidelitas took this all in stride.

Regardless of the people, I came to love it, its deep unexplored mystery's and great diverse vastness. But most importantly, Fidelitas loved it, which made me love it that much more. While I had had lieutenants, I hadn't grown personally close to them, deciding to keep my distance and be objective. So having a constant companion around was something of an adjustment, but like the landscape, it was a welcome change. Fidelitas and I grew close in the next year of living together. He continued to grow smarter and developed his own personality. We also developed something similar to a mind-link.

I had heard of such things told in tales around the fire pits, about how a person, often a wise man from the deserts to the south, could peer into the thoughts of another. I had always believed them to be tall tales. That is until now. Our mind-link wasn't really about sharing each our thoughts; it was more animalistic than that. We shared intense feelings, such as fear or anger or happiness. We could even sometimes share images, but they were often blurry to each other because of our differences in sight.

Zephyrus was true to his word, and we flew together often. However, he couldn't always be there and when he wasn't, he taught me how to ride the wind on my own.

I learned a little of my powers over the first few months.

It happened when I was swimming in a northern river trying to clean off, because _apparently_ spirits can get dirty. I had looked for a river that wasn't too deep and stumbled on one with a bank of sand on one side and a towering cliff studded with needle trees. Since I couldn't swim that great, seeing as how people of the lower class didn't have the free time to learn nor the luxury of a swimming pool and swimming lessons. I was scrubbing one squirming monkey and myself in the river with handfuls of sand. My peplos lay on the branch of a tree drying.

"Stop squirming, it's difficult enough as it is without you adding to it."

"Then stop washing me! It's undignified for a monkey of my stature to, to be molested in such a way!"

"Well, it's either this, or you sleep away from me because Fidelitas, you have fleas."

"So?! Any self-respecting monkey would have fleas."

"Not a self-respecting warm monkey." I reply snidely grabbing another handful of sand and scrubbing harder, making Fidelitas squirm, "Besides, I'm done."

Fidelitas quickly jumped to my shoulder and gave a vigorous shake, then leaped off letting the wind carry him to the shore line, where he sat licking his fur.

I snort and look down into the water rushing past, seeing the distorted profile of my face in the rippling current. I was neither short nor tall, neither fat nor thin, though I was a little on the curvy side. My dark hair reached passed my shoulder blades hanging straight down like a curtain. My face was heart shaped with almond shaped eyes framed by dark lashes. My eyes were the color of the night and where lighted like they were filled with all the stars of the Milky Way. In certain lights they seemed to swirl, or so Fidelitas told me. But the strangest thing about me wasn't my eyes, it was my skin. What used to be pure golden skin baked by the sun from days of hard labor out in the open was now crusted with swirling, ever-present ash.

The ash didn't cover all of my skin, only small patches which formed the patterns on my skin, similar to some of the southerners tattoos that I had seen. The patches colors ranged anywhere between white, to ash gray, to black, to a small patch on my lower back whose cracks glowed with an eerie red glow. The strangest thing about _them_ wasn't the red glow; it was that the patterns seemed to change. Every time I looked at them they were formed in some new intricate pattern. I had gotten used to it by now, but seeing it sometimes still made me uneasy.

As I was contemplating my features I took an unconscious step forward, like I was reaching to wipe the ash pattern off my distorted image, when I slipped on a rock. The spot in the river I had chosen was generally sandy with a deceptively slow moving current. When I had stepped into the cold water I felt the deep immovable steady pull of the current. When we had flown over the river in the morning we had seen a clear blue river studded with deep blue pockets, meaning there were large spots of deep water. One of these pockets was where I ended up being swept into.

I spit up all the air in my lungs and gasped from the shock as I hit the cliff wall on the side of the hole; I arched my back in pain. The water rushed into my lungs choking me for a second. Then I breathed out in a giant whoosh. Then I breathed water in again. In, out, in, out. I was breathing underwater. I WAS BREATHING UNDERWATER!

"Oh, Hades!" I gasp in surprise and cover my mouth with my hands. Or I should say my fins since my hands were now webbed with little frills extending from the back of my hands. I look down at my feet to see they were similar to my hands. I realized then that I could see under water. I looked down at my arms to see that the ash patterns had changed into multicolored scales that flashed in the light, shifting their patterns the same as they had when they were ash. It was terrifying and exhilarating at the same time. I spun in the water, trying to see the rest of me and ended up creating a mini-tornado of bubbles as I spun too fast.

The water was keeping me pushed down to the bottom of the sandy water filled basin near the cliff edge. Everything seemed to still. The water swirled around me with little specks floating by; going about a business only they could understand. Golden light streamed through the upper reaches of the pool and filtering to the lower level. The blue and gold contrasted each other setting off the colors of burgundy streaked cliff wall that lined the hollow. It was beautiful and eerie. Small fish darted in and out of the pool, sprinting towards me then darting away again. It was completely silent, so similar to the deathly silence and strange beauty of Pompeii in the aftermath of Mount Vesuvius' rage.

A second, a day, an age. I sat there for I don't know how long just staring, at myself, at the golden specks flying through the water hurrying to some appointment further down the river. Then I hear a splash that breaks the spell.

Fidelitas had jumped in, frantically trying to rescue me; he couldn't even swim. I pushed off from the bottom leaving quickly disappearing foot indents in the sandy bottom. I shot up, scooped him into my arms and breaking out of the water shooting high into the air. Catching the wind I rose up to the top of the cliffs giving a off a whoop of excitement.

"Did you see me?! I, I was a fish! My patterns they changed!" I was jumping with excitement holding Fidelitas at arm length and swinging him around in a crazy dance and kissed him on the nose.

"Stop! Stop right now! What were THINKING, staying under for so long! I was worried sick; I thought you had drowned or that one of those awful slimy fish had eaten you whole." He screeched at me grabbing my arms convulsively like he was still trying to pry me from the rivers grasp.

"I had grown gills, and the ash patterns had turned into patterns of scales. I think I also had gills! This must be one of my powers, it's so interesting. I wonder what else I can do." My enthusiasm had tapered off into a thoughtful silence. Fidelitas stared at me for a moment then shook his head and threw his paws in the air.

"I'm dealing with a crazy!" He muttered darkly and scrambled out of my hands up onto my shoulder.

"When you get back from insanity, tell me so that we can converse like equals again." He jumped off my shoulder to the ground and huffily scrambled away on all four paws.

I sigh and follow after him.

"I'm sorry to have frightened you, unum fidum. It was not my intent." I say as I reach him, lifting my hand up to scratch him behind the ears where I know he likes to be scratched. He shifts out of my reach frowning down at me.

"I could feel your fear, it was so strong. Then I couldn't feel anything, your fear just faded away and I thought I had lost you, and here you are jumping for joy like some type of lunatic." He sniffed at me covering his eyes with his paws. I reach up and gather him into my arms, cradling him. I rock him back and forth and croon to him a cradle song I had learned that calmed even the most wayward child down.

"Precibus meis, unum fidum. Nec paveatis." I croon to him.

"I'm not scared." He said as he reaches up and hugs me around my neck, "just don't do it again." He whispers.

"Alright, we'll discover our powers together. Promissum?" He looked me in the eyes and nodded once.

"Promissum."

"Alright, let me go put on my peplos and we'll find another way to test our powers."

Over the rest of the year I learned that I could grow feathers from my arms and soar like one of the great eagles without the winds help, I could grow fur, teeth, and claws like a bear when I needed strength, and I could take the form of a few other animals, such as monkeys, cheetahs, snakes, and lizards, all depending on my need. Fidelitas seemed to not have any special powers, though we will keep trying to find something.

It has been almost one full year to the day of pompeii's destruction, I think I would like to go home and visit.

Promissum - Promise

Precibus meis - My apologies

Nec paveatis - don't be scared


	5. Chapter 5 The East WindFirst Believer

**The East Wind**

I am a gold and white statue, a piece of stone, a monument. I stand out starkly against the black barren landscape. The only other thing that stands out is the source of the lands destruction. The mountain no longer spewed ash and molten rock. No, Mount Vesuvius is silent, calm, peaceful in a way that belayed its action's only one year ago. I stood in its shadow staring out at what was once all I'd ever known. Buried here, far beneath the dirt, lay Pompeii. The only sound to carry across this great plane was a thin wailing, like the sound of an old bird singing the last song of its life. The wind carried the lament to the farthest reaches of the flat ground till it reached farther than my eye could see. It was my song, my lament. I was bringing home the dead to rest.

Zephyrus was there, he was the one carrying my song across. He knew what it meant to me that this song be heard at every corner, even if we were the only ones to hear it. Fidelitas was sitting up straight on my shoulder with one paw on the top of my head. His shoulders were thrown back and his head held high like a soldier standing at attention before his commander.

I had started at day break just as the sun was rising, and sang as it continued all through its slow arch across the sky until it reached all the way to the edge of horizon turning the into a brilliant hazy red. I was singing nonstop for it was what the people of Pompeii deserved. As night descended and the air grew chilly, Zephyrus departed on some windly business. All through that night I sat silently in a vigil with only Fidelitas and the Moon to keep me company.

A vigil was usually sat for the dead on the eve of their burial; it allows the spirit of the dead to rest peacefully and move onto their next life. If the vigil is not sat, a ghost may haunt the world, restless and angry forever. The night of Pompeii's burial I had been too scared, surprised, and grief stricken to do it. It is an unforgivable mistake that could only be reconciled by singing them to rest. For as many that died, I would be singing every eve for over 5,000 years.

After my vigil ended at the break of dawn, was when I first met the East Wind.

The new day was breaking, the sun was just beginning to rise from its nightly bed sounding the end to my vigil. I was stumbling away, blurry eyed to find somewhere to rest. My voice was raw from singing; even being a spirit doesn't exempts me from wearing myself out. I was stumbling away, ready to take flight when I was suddenly blown over by a strong gust of wind.

"Zephyrus! Why did you do that?!" I cried out hoarsely, shocked that such an honorable wind would knock me over when I was already about to fall asleep on my feet.

_Zephyrus!? I'm not Zephyrus, _the voice spat at me. _I am Eurus the East Wind! We are complete opposites nothing a like at ALL!_

"My.. apologies." I mutter grumpily, not really caring who this wind was, only that he not disturb me.

_Hmmph. Well whatever, would you like to go for a ride? _And he swept me up without further ado, blowing me in circles making me scream in panic and forcing Fidelitas to grip my hair tightly. _I feel like this has happened to me before, though it was a little more controlled_. We were being swept up to the top of Mount Vesuvius, screaming the whole way, so that we could see a reddish glow deep within the mountains heart. Then we were tumbling past, moving faster and faster. It took me a few minutes to learn how to ride this wind. It was different from Zephyrus.

_WOOOOOOHOOOOOO boy this is fun! I haven't had this much fun in a while, not many spirits can ride the winds, and even fewer can ride with me! I heard you singing and I thought, "well she looks like she can fly; why not give it a try?!" _He let out a peel of laughter.

He was wild, crazy, and he was absolutely fun to ride! He made me forget that I just finished laying the dead to rest! I let out a whoop of delight and transformed into my bird form. My arms stretched out and grew golden feathers that were embroidered with ever shifting patterns from my finger tips. They grew all the way down my arm till the longest reached far past my hip; my legs bent and my toes grew longer, curling and growing talons and leathery skin. The tips of my wings stretched from horizon to horizon seeming to sweep the whole of the world beneath it. My hair grew dark feathers throughout it, matching my hair colors exactly, and growing downy tufts all the way down my neck. My peplos seemed to mold itself to my skin and grow white tail feathers. The growing sunlight reflected off of me, sending my colors into a dance of golds, blacks, reds, and silvers. My whoop of delight came out as an eagle's scream of pure elemental ecstasy. Fidelitas was sitting in the dip between my shoulder blades, his paws wrapped tightly in my hair and tail wrapped firmly around my waist.

We had perfected this type of flight over the last year, with many trials and errors. Once Fidelitas had fallen for hundreds of feet before he was able to right himself, with me laughing the entire time.

We flew all the way through midday, when suddenly Eurus stopped blowing; causing me to stumble and have to right myself in midair. I circle in air slightly confused cocking my head from side to side like a bird, trying to see something that is unseeable.

"Eurus?"

_Zephyrus is here. _The voice sighed like a child caught with his mothers sweets. Suddenly there was a mini tornado that nearly bowled me over. _How dare you! You cannot simply TAKE a spirit for one of your insane, wild rides. You didn't even know that she could ride your wind; you could have seriously injured her, like the last spirit you thought could ride your unlucky winds. _

_My winds are not unlucky! The only ones that are unlucky are the ones who cannot ride them because they are too weak!_

I had the feeling that there was an invisible fight going on since the wind was growing stronger and more treacherous to fly in.

"I think it's time for us to land; they can duke it out on their own terms without killing us accidently." Fidelitas yelled in my ear I screeched in agreement and tilted my wings into a gradual arch facing away from the fighting winds.

"Men." I snort rolling my eyes. Well, I think that they were men. Who could really tell.

When we landed, and after my feathers had ungrown, we realized that we were somewhere to the east, very far to the east, in a place where I believe was called Chiina. _Hmm, maybe not Chiina, was it Shiina, China? I'll have to find that out._ I had never been here, and had only heard stories of silk roads and monsters in the mountains. We had landed on a mountain chink in a mountain range of mail armor that split the sky with jagged teeth. There was one mountain that threw its peak higher than all the rest, disappearing far into the clouds. I sighed, we were entirely lost, I would definitely _have _to go into a town.

I wasn't ready, I was still dreading it, the thought that I would be able to see people, but they wouldn't be able to see me. I took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

Fidelitas knew what I was feeling and petted my hair, leaning against me.

I sigh and take a step forward, only to stumble. I gave a small noise in surprise and looked down at my legs as if I had never seen them; I had forgotten how tired I was.

"I guess I'm going to go take a nap." I say with my mouth opening into a face splitting yawn.

It took me almost an hour to find a cave that wasn't already occupied. (I scared a family of foxes nearly to death, then had to out run them.)

When the sun rose three days later, I rose with it. I stretched before walking out into the chilly morning air. Fidelitas was still asleep, so I left him draped over my shoulders.

_Hmmm, it would be good to go for a walk check out the scenery. From what I saw in the air yesterday, it was a lot different from the forests to the west. _I looked around at the forest in question. The trees didn't really seem like trees, more like thin living pillars.

_Strange. _

It was unique and beautiful in its own way. I was weaving through the "trees" looking around at the different plants and animals, when I heard a rustling in the bushes. I spun around and crouched like a southern fighter. A small black and white bear waddles out of the underbrush chewing on leaves looking curiously at me. We stared at each other for a few minutes before I nodded in respect and continued walking on my way.

_What the hades was that? I've never seen a bear with such coloring. Eurus brought me to a _very _interesting place._

The trees streamed past me like a slow moving parade of colors. The forest was alive with animal noises, each unique voice singing out its worries to another. Fidelitas would be sad he missed this. I could smell the fresh dew that had sunken into the ground releasing an earthy smell.

Then I heard something different from the cacophony of animal sounds. It sounded distinctively human. It was a high and thin cry that barely pierced through the other sounds causing me to pause in my musings and focus. I turned in that direction and picked up my pace, reaching up to shake Fidelitas awake.

"Wha.. what's happening?!" He started awake and looked around bleary eyed.

"Shhh… I think I heard someone crying." He looked at me for a second.

"Where are we?" I looked at him and just sighed, shaking my head at his sleepy silliness.

"We're in the forest outside the cave we spent three days sleeping in."

"That's not what I… never mind." I chuckle and reach up to scratch him behind the ears. If he had been born a cat he would have purred.

We walked quickly through the living pillars until we reached the edge of a clearing where I slowed down and stopped. There was a small girl crouched in the middle of the clearing crying. I had forgotten that I wouldn't be seen, I would be of no help to the girl at all. I sighed and prepared myself to be "unseen," only to be surprised when she quickly glanced up at me and wiped the back of her hand across her eyes and stood up.

"Who are you?" She said with her accented voice slightly quavering. She stood up tall with her shoulders thrown back and chin lifted in defiance.

I look at her for a moment then ask slowly, "can you see me?"

"Of course I can, why wouldn't I be able to? You're a foreigner, aren't you?"

"I suppose so, yes."

"You're funny looking." I threw my head back and roared with laughter until tears rolled down my cheeks. The innocent yet often brutal comment of a child, something I had missed so very much in this last year.

"I suppose so, yes!"

I laugh and walk/danced a few steps forward into the light, fully illuminating my features to the girl in front of me. I wiped the tears from my eyes. She had short black hair with dark eyes that were slightly raised at the outside corners. She was wearing an outfit that looked like a peplos wrapped tightly around her body.

_Yes, this is definitely a strange land. _

"What are you doing here?"

"I was looking around, and I heard you crying. I wanted to see if I could help."

"Oh, I'm fine." She sniffs and turns away, wrapping her arms around herself.

"Hmm, so you weren't just crying all alone in the middle of this forest?" I ask gesturing with my hands all around me.

"Well, that's something else. I ran away from home and I got lost." I walk over to her and crouch down wrapping my arms around my knees.

"Why did you runaway?"

"My grandparents say that when I grow up, I have to get married to someone. They make me wear stuffy outfits and fix my hair in really tight buns! I don't want to get married; I want to be a warrior!"

"Everyone has to grow up sometime."

"But, I don't want to!" She yelled, stamping her foot on the ground with a look of betrayal.

"Hmm, all I said was that you have to grow up, not that you always have to do it the way other people say you should. Though you shouldn't just disregard them, they are your family after all." She looked down at me with a curious expression on her face.

"No one has ever told me that I could do what I wanted." She said slowly, mulling it over.

"It is up to you to decide, they can help influence your choice, but they can't choose for you. When you change, it's up for you to decide what you change into." She sat down in the grass next to me for a little while thinking. We chatted and even played a few games together, forgetting for a while that she was lost. It was well past midday before she looked up at me as if in shock.

"Do you know the way back to the village? I forgot that I was lost, my grandparents are probably crazed with worry!"

"No, I don't know the way back, do you remember the way you headed away from the village."

"I… I think I ran towards the rising sun."

"Hmm, let's go look for it." I stand up and stretch, pulling her along with me from the place we sat at the edge of the clearing.

"Okay." She reached up and took my hand with a worried look on her face.

"I hope we get there before night falls, grandfather will be so worried."

"Ne cures, we will be with you." Fidelitas had fallen asleep within minutes of our horsing around, and had only woken up around an hour ago. He had joined in our games at first grudgingly but with growing enthusiasm.

"To the west then."

We walked together for a long time, until she grew sleepy and I picked her up to carry her. Night fell, I kept walking. The moon had made a quarter of its way through the sky when lights appeared in the distance. They were bobbing and weaving through the trees. I stared at them for a second before breaking into a grin. They had come searching for her, and it seemed like the whole village had come out, this was one special girl. I gently pulled her off of my shoulders and laid her down on the ground, with her back to a tree. I petted her hair softly for a moment and smiled softly. It had been a wonderful day, one that gave me hope that other children would see me. I wasn't sure why she had been able to, she just could. I felt like we were destined to meet, that the advice I gave her would help her reach her destiny.

She stirred slightly at being set on the ground and cracked her eyes open. She blinked up at me.

"Are we there yet, did you find it?"

"Yes. The villagers went looking for you, they are right over there." I say pointing towards the floating lights. She looked at me and said, "I'm sorry I never told you my name. My name is Mulan. What is yours?"

"Maeror. My name is Maeror." I say softly, savoring the feeling of meeting someone new.

"Thank you for helping me, and thank you for your advice on what I should do. Are you leaving?"

"Yes."

"Will I ever see you again?" I was struck suddenly when she asked me this. I knew the answer to her question and it grieved me.

"No, I don't think you will."

"Oh," she looked down frowning slightly, "at least I'll remember you right?"

I smile down at her sadly, knowing the answer to that question as well.

"Yes, I'm sure you will." Fidelitas, who had been walking next to me the whole time and who was waiting patiently for us to leave, looked up sharply at my comment before quickly looking away before Mulan could notice. He knew. He could sense my deep feeling of sadness.

"Good, you're a good friend." She yawned and closed her eyes, settling more comfortably against the tree.

"Vale, catulo."

I get up and walk a few feet away, waiting for the villagers to get there. When one finally found Mulan, he raised the alarm in a high pitched voice and language that I didn't understand. An older couple rushed over and picked Mulan up crying with relief. None noticed me, nor even glance in my direction. Mulan stayed asleep through the whole thing. I stepped forward, hoping that maybe, just maybe, I could catch their attention and they would see me. I reached a hand out and clutched at a woman's sleeve, only to have my hand pass right through her. I gasped and jumped back, right through a man. Cold, this feeling was cold. And sad, so very very sad.

I smiled sadly down at Fidelitas who had stayed away to let me say my goodbyes to Mulan.

"Even though she won't remember me specifically, she'll remember my advice, maybe as a dream, or a dream of a dream, and maybe apply it to her life."

"How do you know? How do you know you said the right thing?"

"I don't know, I just believe that I said the right thing."

"Huh, well that's fine, as long as you believe." He says while rolling his eyes. I snort at him.

"Where would you like to go, we have the whole world at our fingertips!" I say, trying to shake off my feeling of sadness.

"Anywhere, as long as there aren't beavers, I _hate _beavers." I snort again and begin walking, heading in no specific direction, but hoping to maybe, just maybe change another child's life.

_Alright, to I threw Mulan (All rights reserved, yada, yada, yada) in here for funsies. (She's also the bravest Chinese girl I know (no offense to other brave Chinese girls)) Also this is the only time she will appear in my fanfic (except for a few mentions), which is the reason why this isn't a crossover. I will continue righting the story, it'll just be in the current timeline, say maybe…. 10 years after pitches defeat? Yeah somewhere around then. Well I hope you enjoy it, please rate and review. I ALWAYS love suggestions, so don't be afraid to let me know!_

_Vale – Goodbye_

_Caluto – young one_

_Ne cures – don't worry_


	6. AUTHORS NOTE

AUTHORS NOTE

Hello, and welcome to my mind! Not really but that would be cool. First off, anyone who has not read the chapters _**READ THEM! AND COMMENT TOO! **_For the rest of us people, I have a question, I have been thinking about the direction of this story and I was wondering if you guys would like to read this in third person.


	7. Chapter 7 Nothing Like the Present

_**I'm having everyone other than Maeror's POV be in third person, don't ask me why, I just am, If you don't like it let me know. **_

_**Sorry for being so late, I have been reading Atlas Shrugged, which is a 1069 page college level novel of single space 7-point font. And yes, yes I am bragging. I haven't even turned on my computer this entire week, and have only watched TV when I exercise. It was also my last week of work for the summer.**_

_**Also my updates aren't going to be that regular since I'm starting college again this Monday, sorry but it is what it is and I'll try to update as much as possible.**_

**Nothing Like the Present**

A fire crackled merrily in the hearth sending flickering shadows cascading across the red handcrafted couch and a tall bulky figure leaning back against it. A little farther back was a well padded chair with a much smaller figure perched on its arm, lazily swinging its staff back and forth; staring, memorized by the flames. Almost distractedly it looks up at the bigger figure.

"North, for the past ten years you and the rest of the Guardians have been teaching me about what being a Guardian is all about. I know that you've all pretty much taught me everything you know," the figure grinned, showing off a set of perfectly white and perfectly straight teeth, "some better than others of course. And I know that you talked about the other spirits and stuff, I was kinda wonderin' when I was gunna, you know, meet themmmmmm?" He was mumbling at the end peeking up with puppy dog eyes. The tall figure let out a booming laugh.

"Is okay, we were coming to that! We were going to present you to others as soon we get the chance. It just not been right time, busy and all that."

"GREAT!" The slim figure jumped up swinging his staff around wildly, "cause I've had this idea for a while now. You see I was flying around one day bringing snow to New York when I saw this party, right." He glanced over quickly at the bulky one making sure that he was still following him, "and I was thinking that maybe we could throw one for all the spirits!" He finished with a flourish.

"Hmm, we have thought of this already, but too many conflicting schedules. What I'm saying is, Jack, it would not work, there are so many different spirits out there. We would need place where all could go and still be comfortable. Think of trying to get summer spirit here, would not go over well."

"Well that's just it, I have been looking and I know exactly when and where we would have this, kind of a mingle so that other spirits would feel welcome, you know? I was looking into it and I was thinking since it's still kind of in between seasons we would have it soonish, that way everyone would be comfortable."

"It could work, where would we going?"

"To the crystal caves down in mexico."

"Ah, quite beautiful, yes?"

"I haven't actually _been _there yet, but I heard this place from one of the other spirits, called Maeror's Cave? I think that was what it was." The bulky man's face darkened for a moment.

"Is not a good place to go, there is spirit there that…"

"Oh good, we can just invite them too," he squeaked happily dancing around totally riding over whatever it was that was about to be said, "I'm so happy you agreed to this, I don't want any of the other spirits to be lonely." That last part was almost an afterthought. "I'll go look into that cave, see ya." The figure flew to the window, throwing it wide, and flew out without so much as looking back.

The tall figure let out a sigh knowing that this wouldn't end well. _Maeror, _he shuddered thinking about her, she wasn't someone he wanted his friend to mix with.

(Somewhere, deep in the crystal cave…)

I roared with laughter, opening my jaws wide in a teeth filled snarl of pure joy. My muzzle was raised high into the air, my paws were swaying in the wind, and my fur was rippling from both the wind and my powerful muscles. I was fully bear, relishing in the feeling of being alive. My mind was bearly (pun intended) myself, more a mass of instinct than a thinking person. I had awoken from my month long hibernation not two hours ago, and I was happy to be awake. It was time for change.

During the almost 2000 years in which I had been living, I had gained new abilities, and learned new things, about peoples, and cultures, about the human condition. The most important lesson I learned was that man cannot exist by standing still, he must move forward and to move forward means to change. Change was the most important thing on earth, it was more precious than gold. It was more precious than water, or air, or food, since even if a person's body "lived" their spirit would die. Better to live with a strong spirit. A body without soul is like a bird without feathers.

Over these years I often saw the winds, rarely did I ever see them together since they often fought. Fidelitas and I spent most of our time together however, unlike me, he didn't hibernate, so he often wondered around during this time. Despite the fact that I had only just woken up, he had joined me within an hour, letting me wake up fully. Everytime that I wake up, I turn into a bear, a sort of joke between me and Taz.

"How have you been my furry friend?" My voice coming out as a rumble. I looked down at him as he strutted up to join me.

"Oh, Ror, you won't believe whats been happening while you were asleep!" He sprang forward, launching himself onto my shoulder without further ado and launching into a tale of how the East and West wind had created such a scandal with a fight they had which had caused a major hurricane off the cape of Africa.

"You should have _seen _Mother Nature rip them a new one. Oh boy was it hilarious!" I growl-laugh with him at the antics of the two spirits. They meant well, they just had tempers. Taz kept talking, emphasizing certain details with wild hand movements.

It didn't take us to long to figure out Taz's power. He was a medium, _my _medium. He was the one who found the kids who needed that little extra boost to change. He would get a twitch in his tail, leading him in the vague direction of the child, and it would keep on pointing until we reached them. Not all the children I visited became great. Some never listened to my advice, and still others ignored it. That was another option open for them. Their choice, their life. I am… content with how things are, I know that this was how I am supposed to be. I have accepted it, it is my nature.

Another part of my nature is what makes me feared by the other spirits. They fear me because I am one of the few who can actually kill them. Not only can I kill spirits, which sadly had happened before, I am also the one who makes children disbelieve. I am the Disbeliever, the Childhood Destroyer, the Changer. I am the exact opposite of the other spirits, to them I didn't seem to care about the children and how they grew up. It's not that I didn't _care_, it's just that my belief and love for them stopped me from making them robots, no choice but the good, the just, the right. What would Heaven mean if we didn't have hell to compare it too? Should a child not have the right to decide what they want to be in life? To be able to grow into whatever they can or want. Good or bad, naughty or nice. Hitler or Mother Teresa, children should have the option. Of course I would love if the children would choose to be good, wouldn't anyone? But without the option of being bad, what was the point of being good. The opposites are what make each other so meaningful.

After my encounter with Mulan, I visited and was seen by many other children, some that grew up to do great good, others that grew up to do great evil. However, just like with Mulan, the children never saw me for more than one day. There were only two cases in which a child saw me for more than one day.

One was a boy named Attila. He saw me for two days then went on to destroy anything he touched and ended up drowning in his own blood on his wedding night. The second was known as Vlad (the impaler). He went crazy and started drinking blood, impaling peasants on poles and leaving them to rot in the sun, and generally killing anything in sight. He is where the stories of vampires generally started. To say that being seen for more than a day is a bad sign, would be an understatement.

"So Taz, where are we going?" I say crouching down onto all fours.

"North, that's where, a little to the east too. Probably somewhere in the US, like Maine maybe." He replied swinging onto my back and settling right in front of my shoulders on my great shaggy neck.

"Alright then, hold on."

(A few hours later)

"Are we close?" I pant slightly glancing over my shoulder at Taz, flicking my ears to emphasize my question.

"Almost, just down this street."

"Alright, where are we exactly anyways?" I ask as I trot down the main street passing unseen by the people hurrying about their business.

"Some town called Burgess. Man, it's so cold." He shivered rubbing his fur.

I just snort and continue walking turning off the main road at the flick of Taz's tail. We stop in front of a house and stand out in the front. Just as we turned to go into the yard a young man of 18 came sprinting down the pathway, closely followed by a blond haired girl who looked to be about 15 or 16. The boy skidded to a stop staring at me with eyes filled with fright. He threw his arm out to stop the girl, who ran straight into him. She fell down onto her butt and looked up in confusion at the boy.

"Jaime, what's wrong?"

"B… Bear!" He stammers pointing at me. I sit back on my haunches and watch in amusement.

"Jaime, there isn't anything there."

"But, but there's a _bear._" The girl looked at him with a look of confusion. Picking herself off of the ground and wiping her butt free of dust.

"Are you feeling alright Jaime?"

"Y… yeah." He was still staring at me not even looking at his sister, which is what I believed her to be. I cocked my head to the side.

She walked around him looking at him funny, than continued towards the gate.

"If you don't hurry, we're going to be late to Pippa's party you know." He raised his hand and took a step forward to stop his sister when she walked right through me. I shivered slightly but otherwise stayed still.

"I.. I'll be right there, you go on ahead." She shrugged and walked down the street.

"Don't be late." As soon as she disappeared down the street he started towards me.

"Who are you? What spirit?" I suddenly understood why I was needed here.

"It is time to grow up, and to forget." My deep voice rang out with a note of finality, which seemed to echo down the empty road.


	8. Chapter 8 The Boy and the Bear

Fatuus Puer- idiot child

**The Boy and the Bear**

My paw-steps resounded off of the houses and echoed back to me, louder than they ever would be for any other bear. My head swayed softly as if listening to my own music. Beside me walked the boy, Jamie, who had followed me down the street as I had asked him to. We were walking quietly, both of us lost in our thoughts. Suddenly a cat ran across the street yowling being hotly pursued by a dog, forcing us to stop or enter their fight. I took this opportunity to look over my shoulder at the boy. Young-man more like, not very many believers reached this stage, they often forgot by the time they were 12 or 13. Lately, kids have been disbelieving even sooner, something that worries me.

He turned and looked at me, staring questioningly into my eyes.

"What spirit are you?" He blurted out finally. I sat there for a second and cocked my head to the side.

"I am the spirit of change."

"Why has Jack never talked about you? He talks about all the other spirits, and how am I able to see you if I don't believe in you?" I heaved a great bear sigh and snuffled my nose for a moment pondering his question. I then turned and continued on my way down the street.

"I am the spirit of change." Was the only thing I said in reply, as if it was an explanation in and of itself.

"Well the things you saycertainly don't _change_." He mumbled quietly before sighing and jogging to catch up with me.

"I am here to make you disbelieve. It is time for you to forget." He stopped and looked at me a look of horror slowly spreading on his face.

"You.. You're here to make me _disbelieve! _In Jack Frost? Why?!" He spluttered slowly backing away.

"It is time, children were not meant to remember the guardians for so long, it is disastrous to keep a relationship with them for so long." I stop and turn, trying to make the movement non-threatening. Maybe it hadn't been a good idea to stay in bear form. Oh well.

"But _why _is it bad."

"Because we are immortal, or as close to immortal as one can get. We will continue on for years after you are gone, we will have to sit here and watch as you die." I say trying to pitch my deep voice as friendly as possible, even though my next words betrayed no sense of friendliness.

"Do not run," I warned him "Just by seeing me the change has already started, in a week you won't be able to see Jack anymore, in a month you will forget Jack Frost completely. You will remember him only as a part of the fondness of childhood. It is my job to make sure that all children disbelieve, you cannot run from me anymore than you could run from a tidal wave."

"But, but, can't you stop it? I don't want to forget." He looked closed to tears. _Just how close had these two become_? I thought severely, I may have to reprimand Jack Frost. _I'm surprised I wasn't called here earlier, oh wells. _

He turned and ran. I sighed and shifted forms, hoping that I could reason to him better as another animal, not wanting to face him in my human form quite yet. I shifted into an owl and sped on my way.

He had already reached his home and run past it. I followed him silently, cocking my head from side to side, keeping track of him as he moved down different streets. I screeched once in exasperation and followed him.

Jamie was sprinting down the road, racing against what the bear spirit had said. He _wouldn't _forget Jack, he had made a promise. He turned a corner in an alley and slowed down to take a breather, searching around him for any sign of the bear. All he saw was an owl flying, circling around where he was…

"Wait a sec, owls are nocturnal!" He thought back to what the bear had said _I am the spirit of change. _Does that mean… He shuddered and took off running again, hoping that the direction of his thoughts was taking were wrong. He had reached the middle of town now and was running past people, sometimes clipping them in the shoulders and yelling sorry back at their outraged shouts. He looked up and saw the owl was following him.

"Great," he gasped out and swerved into the road at a crosswalk just as the light turned red. He looked to his left and saw a car heading directly at him. He yelled and tried to run faster, knowing he wouldn't make it in time, when suddenly he was lifted from the ground and raised high into the air. He yelled again as he was lifted passed the rooftops. He looked up into the yellow eyes of a very pissed off bird woman.

To say I was angry would be an understatement. This little _Fatuus Puer!_

"Puer stultus! What do you think you were trying to accomplish?! You can't run away from your problems, you have to face them head on, and _look _at where you are going!" I shouted this angrily at him as I gently set him down on the grass in a park. I waved my hands wildly after my feet had safely touched the ground morphing back into my human form. I was all up in his face by the end of a very long explosive outburst of explicative's that would have blistered his ears, if he had understood a single word I had said. It took me a full minute to get myself under control. I took a few deep breathes and than looked at the object of my ire.

"A.. Are you the bear?" He stuttered looking at me with wide eyes. _Probably afraid that I'll bite. _

"I am." I snarled with my teeth bared in a smile, or as close to a smile as I could make at the moment, since I was still furious inside.

"And if you ever do something like that again, I'll do you a favor and snap your own scrawny neck for you and save everyone the trouble." He took a step back looking like he was about to run again. _I need to calm down, I must still be riding the instincts of a bear. _I sighed and ran a hand through my hair.

"I'm kidding kid, I can't exactly _hurt _a child, not without serious repercussions. Even if they seem to have a death wish."

"I wouldn't have run into the traffic like that if _you _hadn't been chasing me." He said a little defensively.

"Yes, blame me for all of your stupidity, since that worked so well for all the greats."

"The greats?" He asked his gaze curious. At least he no longer looked like he was going to run away or faint anytime soon.

"Yes, the greats. People like George Washington, Michelangelo, Martin Luther, and the such. They didn't go a round blaming others for their problems. They fixed them." I say this looking into his eyes pointedly.

"Anyways, this is one problem you can't run away from, it will follow you until it is done with, and no amount of wishing will make it go away. You've had more time with the guardians than most can say."

"But Jack is my friend!"

"And that changes nothing." I say my eyes almost kind. I had had to explain this too many times to too many people. The spirits will never learn.

"It is not your fault. Jack should have not been coming back so often and this process should have been gradual. But now it isn't. Thanks to a certain frost spirit." I sighed again, knowing that I will have to talk to Santa Claus about dealing with their newest member.

"Don't blame Jack please, I wanted to be his friend." He looked worriedly at me. I smile at him and turn walking through the trees.

"Let's talk for a while, you won't see me after today, and I've been asleep for a while."

"What would you like to talk about?" I smile at him.

"Anything."

"How come you can turn into a bird? Why were you a bear?" I laughed at his questions and answered them, slipping pieces of advice into my answer, knowing instinctively what he needed to hear. I had a good feeling about this one.

Night had fallen and I had said goodbye to a very melancholy Jamie. I smile down a Taz as we looked at the flickering lights of the town.

"Let's go explore!" Taz yelled and I laughed, no point in being sad over being the harbinger of the end of childhood.

"Let's!"

The next day I floated back down to the town of Burgess. I wanted to make sure that Jamie wasn't too broken up about forgetting Jack. I stopped in front of his house with the sun at my back casting a warming glow on the house and me. I closed my eyes briefly, savoring the warmth.

"Maeror?" Came the tentative question.

My eyes flew open and stared in shock and a pair of curious brown eyes.

Sorry guys its been a moth since my last update, but I have been reeaaaallll busy with the starting of my sophomore year of college and I have a pretty busy schedule. Anyways plllllllllllllllllllllllleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaa aaasssssssssssseeeeeee review. In total I have like three reviews and I want to get a little feedback from you guys. Thanks, hope you enjoy!


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